


Just Kiss Me

by Blondjjong



Category: EXO (Band), SHINee, SuperM (Korea Band)
Genre: AU, M/M, Mutual Pining, Past TaeKai
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-18
Updated: 2020-11-18
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:28:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27615566
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blondjjong/pseuds/Blondjjong
Summary: Jongin is back in town and Taemin is doing a bad job pretending he doesn't care.
Relationships: Kim Jongin | Kai/Lee Taemin
Comments: 4
Kudos: 28





	Just Kiss Me

Some nights it's all Taemin can do to not roll his eyes at the way Jongin walks up to the bar, acting surprised to see Taemin behind it, working. He has half a mind to brush the brunette off and let Kibum mix Jongin's drink tonight, but decides against it. Taemin’s too busy pretending to have let this go to not serve Jongin, a bit childish in the way he feels a kind of determination, wanting to do a better job of pretending than the show Jongin puts on every time they cross paths. 

Taemin works every friday night, has for years now, and Jongin is no stranger to this fact. Hell, he used to take up space on the bar corner to the right of where he's currently standing, placing his order, and throwing that easy smile in Taemin’s direction. It's still so much more charming than Jongin realizes. 

Truthfully, Taemin’s not listening to Jongin’s words. He knows Jongin's order by heart, fingers already plucking the glass bottle from the bar, letting it spin in his hand in a blatant show of skill, just because he can. Taemin knows Jongin loves watching his tricks, and there’s a certain bit of joy Taemin gets at rubbing in, at every opportunity, just what Jongin lost. The small bubble of pride in his chest is smushed quickly by the bitterness he feels at Jongin’s ‘keep the change’. He'd love nothing more than to toss the overtip at the back of the Jongin's head as he turns away.   
  
“You’re so obvious.” Kibum digs, his lips curling into a truly amused smile, as he pours a line of shots next to Taemin. A statement Taemin disregards with a ‘fuck off’ that only turns Kibum’s smile to a grin.   
  
If you asked Taemin, he’d tell you he’s not watching Jongin. He’s over it. He didn’t even notice the girl lingering around Jongin, who is far too charmed by the natural aura Jongin carries with him everywhere he goes. Taemin’s getting good at this pretending thing; acting like he’s not noticing Jongin’s large palm, and slender fingers, resting on the girl’s lower back. Just the same way he’s pretending not to feel the weight of Jongin’s brown eyes, every time he catches Jongin watching him from across the bar.    
  


-

  
“I like the blond.” 

It’s hours been since that first drink, and Jongin has slid himself onto one of the worn stools in front of the counter. The exact one, with its worn lacker, and slight wobble, that used to be Jongin's haunt every friday night. Taemin stops trying to make himself look busy, instead pressing his palms into the edge of the bartop. Taemin quirks an eyebrow, trying his damndest not to look affected by the lazy cock of a smile that teases at Jongin’s too plush lips. 

Before Jongin had skipped town, Taemin’s hair had been nearly black, a soft cascade over his forehead. It's a stark contrast to the long blond he’d adopted in the artist’s absence, the hard middle part letting soft waves frame Taemin's face, balancing the natural roundness of his features.   
  
“I needed a change.”    
  
Taemin's words hold a bit of weight, pressing meaning into them with the tone of his voice, echoing the unsatisfying words Jongin had left him with nearly eight months ago. The double meaning is evident to the both of them, shifting the mood between them. The statement is a heavy companion to the crackle of attraction that still sparks between them. 

Jongin leans forward, arms resting on the bartop, as if pulled towards the man standing on the other side. The tension between them is palpable, phasing out the rest of the world around them, the loud music blending into the noise of the other bar patrons, cocooning them in the moment.

And this is the time of the night when the bartender questions himself and his resolve, tongue peeking out to wet his lips, as Jongin’s gaze comes to linger on them. Taemin’s fingers curl against the fiberglass counter, exercising every bit of restraint he has in him not to just lean in and close the distance from Jongin’s lips to his own.   
  
It had been Jongin who left, Jongin who tore what had built between them over the years since the artist first rolled into their small town. Too many nights Taemin had spent arguing on long distance calls with Jongin, trying desperately to work things out to no avail. Too many days after Jongin took off to the city that had Taemin spent longing, his chest heavy, and aching from the size of the hole left right in the center of it. He might not have his heart any more, Jongin long since having taken that, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to let Jongin take his pride.    
  
Still, for all he refuses to close that foot of space stretched like miles between them, Taemin can’t help the little mantra of ‘kiss me’ that tugs at his mind. Jongin doesn’t seem to catch any of Taemin’s thoughts though, the heavy black leather of his well worn jacket pulling tight on broad shoulders, as he leans in just that little bit more. Not nearly enough, but closer, pulling Taemin’s heart to race in his throat as Jongin shifts.   
  
“Need for change,” There's a rumble of a chuckle from Jongin, head tilting to the side as he observes Taemin. Taemin uses every bit of will he’s got left, stopping his eyes from wandering down to the expanse of skin exposed by the white button up shirt, as Jongin leans in. “I get that.”   
  
His words make Taemin’s lips purse, stinging a bit when the statement drops into the air between them, because he doesn’t miss the double meaning in Jongin’s words, either. There’s a bit of a pause as the words linger between them, before Jongin is pressing large hands to the bartop, sitting up, and slipping off his stool. He meets Taemin’s guarded eyes, giving him a smile that is a painful shade of vulnerability, longing flitting across Jongin’s face.   
  
“Night Taem-ah.”    
  
This time Taemin really does roll his eyes, as Jongin turns, long legs carrying him across the bar, and out to the parking lot, where Taemin is sure his red ‘64 GTO is parked. Dramatic, and unnecessary, and quite frankly, Taemin knows he’s won this one. Jongin’s words lose their impact with the knowledge that Jongin will, more than likely, be driving slowly by Taemin’s house later that night. The bartender pretending not to notice as he rolls by, late night just like every Friday night since he turned back up in town.    
  
Jongin might still have his heart, but Taemin’s the one between them still hanging onto his pride.


End file.
